ABCDx and the EIC Accelerator: A Finger-Prick Test for Stroke

ABCDx, a company with offices in Geneva and Barcelona, develops blood tests to diagnose brain emergencies, led by LVOCheck for large vessel occlusion (LVO), the most severe kind of ischaemic stroke. Its EIC application promised "fast identification of large vessel occlusion (LVO) in acute stroke, just by analysing a blood drop", so ambulances could take patients straight to a thrombectomy centre, "saving thereby an average of 2 hours from symptom onset to treatment", according to CORDIS, where the project is held by its Spanish entity, Advanced Brain Companion Diagnostics Spain SL.

The European Innovation Council granted €2,772,276 towards a €3.96 million project from May 2023 to April 2025. The final report says ABCDx developed a lateral flow test measuring three blood biomarkers, NT-proBNP, D-Dimer and H-FABP, and an AI decision support app, and validated them in two studies in Spain and Germany using 807 plasma samples. The system "achieved 64–74% sensitivity at 93% specificity, significantly outperforming current clinical triage scores". A request for FDA Breakthrough Device Designation was submitted and CE marking under the EU in vitro diagnostics regulation was being prepared. In October 2025 ABCDx began an ambulance pilot with Charité in Berlin.

Where ABCDx Stands Now

The ambulance pilot tests the full platform in real emergencies: a rapid blood test, an app that guides paramedics and reads the result, an AI algorithm combining blood data with clinical information, and a secure link to the hospital. ABCDx says the pilot is meant "to prepare for CE marking and clinical deployment across Europe", and that the test predicts LVO in 10 minutes. No CE mark for LVOCheck, and no outcome of the FDA Breakthrough request, has been announced.

The Technology: Three Proteins and an Algorithm

Clot removal by thrombectomy is only available at specialised centres, about 3,000 worldwide, ABCDx says, and patients sent first to a hospital without it lose time. Clinical scales used by paramedics are not accurate enough, the report says, and mobile stroke units with scanners are expensive. LVOCheck measures three proteins from a drop of blood and combines them with clinical signs to flag likely LVO.

What the EIC Project Promised, and What CORDIS Shows

The project promised a validated, market-ready triage test. It produced the assay, the app, a quality system under ISO 13485 and validation data. The accuracy it reports means that roughly one in four to one in three LVO strokes would not be flagged, and the 15-20% clinical benefit claimed in the application has not been shown in a trial of the device in use. Regulatory approval had not been obtained at the end of the project. CORDIS lists the project as closed.

1. Point-of-care assayDeliveredThree-biomarker test.
2. AI decision appDeliveredIntegrated.
3. Clinical validationPartial64-74% sensitivity.
4. CE and FDA statusPendingNot announced.

The Money

ABCDx has combined EIC, Eurostars and Catalan ACCIÓ grants. No private funding round has been announced since the EIC award. Whether the EIC Fund invested under the blended award, and the company's finances, are not public.

What Cannot Be Checked

Why Europe Should Care

Large vessel occlusions cause most stroke disability and deaths, ABCDx says, and every hour of delay matters. A cheap blood test in ambulances could route patients faster, especially far from stroke centres. The EIC funded its development; the test still needs to prove it improves outcomes and to win approval.

The Verdict

ABCDx and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.